Effing Taxes

I just received an email from my tax adviser, Steven T at the accounting firm of Laventhol and Horwath (actually, Van Brundt Du Biageo on Summer Street). Help me out here - why do I always think of Laventhol and Horwath when I think of accounting? Did they sponsor the People's Court or the Academy Awards or something like that? Anyway, I digress.

Thanks to our nation's crappy tax code - one that penalizes people that happen to live in high cost areas (such as, let's say, oh, I don't know, Fairfield and Westchester counties), my family is getting reamed. First of all, we pay a HUGE amount in annual federal taxes. We work in New York but live in Connecticut, so we have the privilege of paying tax in BOTH states.

And because of our income, even with 2 kids we no longer qualify for any deductions outside of our regular mortgage interest. To add insult to injury, for the last 3 years our household has been an unwilling member of the Alternative Minimum Tax Club.

Granted- by 'absolute' standards, we bring in a healthy income. But by the RELATIVE standards of this country, and the high percentage that our average living expenses eats up of our income, we are firmly middle class. We live in a 1500 square foot house in a mixed blue/white collar area. We drive a Honda Odyssey and a Honda Civic. We take one vacation a year, and I clip coupons to save on groceries.

Every year come spring, I am afflicted with Seasonal Affective Tax Anxiety. Every year, the AMT takes a bigger bite out of our butts. We're already claiming zero exemptions...what else is a family supposed to do to try to keep up? Oh, and as far as the 'stimulus package', thanks for nothing, effing Congress. You can cram your rebate checks where the sun don't shine, because my family ain't getting squat.

And who should I vote for? I'm a fiscal conservative and a social liberal. Because I'm a feminist I should probably be a Democrat. But nobody, Democrat OR Republican, has the stones to pursue a flat tax code that would have everyone share a fair proportion of the tax burden...and eliminate all of the money we waste maintaining the IRS, which has to be one of the most hated government bureaucracies outside of the Cold War KGB.

So McCain, Obama, Clinton, Paul, LaRouche, I don't really give two hoots today...the day I got my tax results from my accountant. None of you are really going to make a difference in MY fiscal life.